Data from: A new ant genus from the Greater Antilles and Central America, Zatania (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), exemplifies the utility of male and molecular character systems

The ant genus Prenolepis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) is the nominal member
of the recently established Prenolepis genus-group within the subfamily
Formicinae. Our molecular phylogenetic analyses using fragments from six
genes (CAD, elongation factor 1-α F1, elongation factor 1-α F2, wingless,
arginine kinase, and cytochrome oxidase) discovered that this genus is
polyphyletic. While the majority of Prenolepis species were found to
belong to the same monophyletic group (Prenolepis, sensu stricto), a
smaller subset of Prenolepis species, all found in either Central America
or the Greater Antilles, were robustly inferred to comprise a distinct
lineage that is sister to the Old World genus Paraparatrechina. Here we
describe this newly discovered lineage within the larger Prenolepis
genus-group clade. The genus Zatania, gen. nov., is comprised of five
extant species (albimaculata, cisipa, gibberosa, gloriosa, sp. nov., and
karstica) and one Dominican amber fossil species (electra, sp. nov.).
These are medium sized ants (generally between 2.5-3 mm in total length)
that are characterized by having long scapes and legs and elongated
mesosomata. A reliance on worker-based taxonomy has previously prevented
the discovery of this new lineage due to worker convergence consisting of
various combinations of elongated mesosomata, long scapes and legs, and a
constriction immediately behind the pronotum, observed in several distinct
lineages within the Prenolepis genus-group. However, we did find that male
morphology complements our molecular results in revealing important
diagnostic and potentially phylogenetically informative. Our study
highlights the value for ant systematics to expand beyond its traditional
foundation of worker-based morphology and embrace character systems from
other castes and molecular data.